James Gandolfini conquers fear of 'God of Carnage'

James Gandolfini may not seem like the type to suffer from stage fright, but he says his transition from the small screen to the Great White Way was more than a little "nerve-racking."

"But once you get the hang of it, you're fine," the New Jersey-born tough guy told us after after the premiere of his Broadway play, "God of Carnage." "The best part is, I'm making people laugh now. And that's a good thing."

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The burly actor shared that his co-stars Jeff Daniels, Marcia Gay Harden and Hope Davis "were very cool and patient. I still f— up now and again, but that's life. I don't get nervous now. It's starting to become fun."

Despite the three-time Emmy winner's desire for distance from his HBO role in "The Sopranos," there are visible flashes of mob boss Tony during Gandolfini's angrier scenes. But he's quick to say that's not intentional.

"Naw, that's just me," he said with a chuckle and a hand rub along the back of his neck. "There are gonna be some similarities. I played that role for 10 years."

Luckily, audiences seem eager to say ciao to Tony Soprano and embrace the new Gandolfini. In its second full week of previews, "God of Carnage" posted a $32,201 gain in box office sales over the previous week, according to Playbill.com

The show's premiere also drew a number of celebs, including Jeremy Irons, who admitted, "I'm most looking forward to sitting on my bottom and watching someone else work." His sentiment was echoed by "33 Variations" star Colin Hanks, who was "just happy not being the one on stage for a night."

As the star-studded audience filed into the theater for the play — which centers on two sets of parents arguing over their children's schoolyard dustup — they weighed in on the best way to solve an argument.

Hugh Jackman, rushing in with his wife, paused to smirk, "With your wife, there's no way to win an argument!"

Offered Harden: "You have to go with what you really want, and you shouldn't always want to be right." But Gandolfini wouldn't touch the question, chuckling: "I'm not answering that one!"

The best answer of the night went to Alan Alda: "Either toss a coin or get in the mud and wrestle."

Seen and heard

Robin Williams is going to be A-OK. The comedian successfully underwent heart surgery at the Cleveland Clinic on March 13 and is "expected to make a full recovery," says a rep. The 3½-hour operation was conducted to replace Williams' aortic valve, repair his mitral valve and correct an irregular heartbeat. Joked the funnyman post-surgery, "I'm thinking the next leg of my ('Weapons of Self-Destruction') tour will be 'Weapons of Self-Destruction and Reconstruction!'"